DVD | The Omen

Rating: R16 - Contains Violence, Offensive Language & Horror.
Duration: 110 mins.
Genre: Horror.
Actors: Julia Stiles, Pete Postlethwaite, David Thewlis, Mia Farrow, Liev Schreiber, Josh Hutcherson, Seamus Davey-Fitzpatrick.
Release Date: Available Now.

When American ambassador Robert Thorn arrives at the Hospital after hearing the news that his wife had gone into labour, he is greeted by a grim faced doctor who has some bad news; his baby died in childbirth.

Adding to his torment the doctor informs him that his wife suffered damage to her womb during the process and would never be able to have children.

But then the doctor offers the grieving dad an easy way out, you see there was this woman who gave birth at the same time, only she died during labour leaving an orphaned new born baby boy, no one would know if the two would swap, and it would give his wife the baby she’d dreamed of.

I had, what I though would have been a clear advantage to enjoying this re-make, that is having not seen the original. I wouldn’t know what was supposed to happen, so the story would be fresh, the suspense, action and plot twists would keep me on edge.

Sadly I was wrong. The Omen played out like a bad copy of Final Destination, where the impending deaths are basically laid out for you to see before they happen. Whilst there were some frights, the movie as a whole tended to plod along in a predictable way. About half way through the movie, it was easy to see what was going to happen at the end, and the rest of the movie was only watched to be sure that my prediction was correct.

About the only thing Omen has going for it was the casting of the little kid, whose looks fit the character perfectly.

Food for thought:
Would the Anti-Christ really have such an obvious birth mark?

Rent or Buy?
Rent, if you’re desperate.